Preparation

Scatter bread on a rimmed baking sheet in a single layer. Let stand at room temperature to slightly dry out, about 2 hours.

Working in batches, cook collards and kale separately in a large pot of boiling salted water until slightly softened, about 3 minutes per batch. Rinse to cool. Squeeze out excess water; roughly chop. Set aside.

Heat 1/4 cup oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add carrots, celery, and leek; stir often until softened, 8-10 minutes.

Add garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes, crushing with your hands as you add them. Cook, stirring frequently, until liquid is evaporated and tomatoes begin to stick to the bottom of the pot, 10-15 minutes.

Add broth, beans, thyme, marjoram, bay leaf, and reserved greens; season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until flavors meld and soup thickens slightly, 40-50 minutes. DO AHEAD: Soup can be made 2 days ahead. Let cool slightly; chill until cold. Cover and keep chilled. Reheat before continuing. Store bread airtight at room temperature.

Just before serving, gently stir bread and 1/4 cup oil into soup. Divide among bowls, top with Parmesan, and drizzle with oil.

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Reviews

When it's cold and rainy during the day I start to obsess about this soup - makes me grateful for those gray dreary days. Chopping, dicing, and watching those greens cook down, just thinking about all that goodness flowing into the soup. It'll forgive you no matter how you try to mess it up. You go from one spoonful to the next trying a bit of bread here, some beans there...oh, those carrots look good! This soup's got your back. It's your friend.

This is a wonderful soup you can adjust several ways. I added Farro toasted and a couple extra garlic cloves. I sprayed olive oil on the Sourdough breadcrumbs added garlic salt and toasted them. Yummy!!!

Best general veggie stew we've had in a long time! The whole Family loved it, and it is now and our normal rotation. I concur with previous reviews of just adding the greens right in, it's really delicious even when that sautéing step is skipped. You can also play around with amounts of beans or tomatoes or liquids depending on preference.

Was tempted to add sausage so I'd get buy-in from my husband but opted not to and am glad I skipped it -- though it'd be good in there. I doubled the carrots & celery and added half a small onion and a large shallot because I didn't have a leek. I added a big bag of Trader Joe's Power Greens (removed the large ribs) after the veggies had softened and cooked them down for several minutes before adding a can of crushed tomatoes and only 4 cups of stock, as we prefer more of a stew consistency. I toasted the bread cubes and used them as topping with a sprinkling of Parm. My husband went back for seconds of a meal with no meat in it and said several times how much he liked it and that it didn't NEED meat in it to be good. YAY!!! I made this when pressed for time, so the simmering time was cut down by quite a bit. I'm anxious for the leftovers, as I know they'll be even better. Another meatless dinner goes into rotation!

Delicious, will definitely make again. Following the suggestions of some reviewers, I did not par boil the greens and, so they would not get mushy, added them in the last 15 minutes of cooking. For my taste, this did not work as the greens, especially the collards, were too chewy. I ended up cooking the stew an additional 30+ minutes. Next time I will put the greens in when the broth is added. I also added the beans in the last 15 minutes of cooking which was fine as they were canned. Absolutely include sourdough croutons which add a nice flavor.

This was delicious! As someone else mentioned, it is definitely better a day later. I have given jars of the stew to two other people, and they all said they thought it was definitely four stars -- and they aren't vegetarians as we are.

This was WONDERFUL!! Very easy to make and warming for the winter. Definitely NO need to precook the greens. They cook right into the stock while you're simmering. I added whole italian tomatoes in puree and added it all to make a rich tomato-vegetable broth. Can't wait to make it again!

I made this recipe with two exceptions: I could not find leeks and used a chopped half onion in place and I added mushrooms. I used homemade stock. But it really was wonderful and with complex flavors. The sourdough bread has rosemary in it which added to the flavors.

Excellent! A friend came by today and said our house smelled like her favorite Italian restaurant in NYC! This is a wonderful, full-bodied stew/soup and makes an ample amount.
I thought this was a very labor intensive dish to make, however. I added sauteed Italian chicken sausage and used rustic Italian bread which added to the flavor. Next time, I will try not pre-cooking the greens which I just noticed another reviewer mentioned. Definitely a keeper!

I have been making a version of this soup for years. Omit the olive oil and be careful with the bread and beans and you have Weight Watchers famous "garbage" soup. Use any combination of non-carb veggies and you will have a delicious, filling, never disappointing meal that you can keep going practically forever on the stovetop. Kale and collards are a must as they hold up, but don't be afraid to add any of the more tender, leafy greens. My favorite to add: beet tops. Fantastic!

I cooked this last night and my wife and I loved it. I did make some adjustments to the recipe, I used all fresh kale because I could not find collar greens, I also did not blanch the kale just washed it well and put it in raw, I used the jucie from the canned tomatoes and I made crutons and put them on top of the soup with the olive oil and shaved parmigian. Some of what I did saved time and the meal came out wonderfully.

My family and I loved this soup. Made it today for the first time. I did not blanch the collards or the Kale. I removed the ribs and the stems chopped them and added directly to the soup. I also did not cut the leeks, carrots and celery in small dice. I cut them to be chunky and more rustic. And finally I added a little sugar. after I added the tomatoe
I can't wait to make this again.

On a cold day this stew hit the spot. I followed the recipe using my home grown collard greens, Swiss chard, oregano and I added fresh home grown flat Leif parsley, sage and basil. We loved the flavor and we will definitely make it again

If you're planning on a quick week-night meal - this might not be the one for you. It is quite delicious, however. I used one bunch of kale (that's what I had on hand), pretty much followed the recipe except for not draining the tomatoes. I don't think it mattered though. I made croutons in the oven and did not stir them into the soup but sprinkled them on top. I, too, thought 3 cans of beans was a lot, but threw them in any way and was not disappointed!

My husband found this recipe because we were looking for more ways to eat beans. We are both addicted to this soup!!! I cook 1 lb of spicy Italian sausage in the pan before cooking the leek mixture. Save the sausage on the side and throw it back in at the end. There is so much flavor, especially if you find a good heavy sourdough or french bread. We just tried it with rainbow chard and it was delicious!

An excellent soup, reminiscent of the vegetable soups we had in Tuscany. We removed the ribs of the greens and chopped them coarsely. We did not precook them. We added them with the broth. They were perfectly tender when the soup was cooked and we did not lose their flavor or nutritional value. Also, we added the beans at the end so they did not turn to mush! The sourdough bread was excellent in the soup!